Nottingham days

I feel like I get so down on Nottingham sometimes. I’ve lived here on and off since I was 18, and a total of 12 years, but I still don’t really think of it as home. I grew up in Bristol and spent 3 years in Sydney in my 20s, so it just feels a bit small really.

But Nottingham isn’t a bad place, really. There’s a lot of cool, independent shops and cafes and restaurants and it’s pretty creative. At the weekend I reminded myself of this by spending an afternoon and evening marauding around, starting with an amazing crepe in Aubrey’s Traditional Creperie (in the West End Arcade).

This is one of their current specials – dark chocolate, salted caramel, vanilla ice cream and a pour-over espresso shot. Later, we investigated the new cocktail bar, Lost Property, hidden away down an alley in Hockley and accessed by pulling the correct handle on a certain red briefcase… it’s a pretty crazy place, done out just like an old fashioned lost property office, piled high with suitcases, birdcages, books and all manner of bizarre objects.

After sushi for dinner, we eventually finished the night in Jam Cafe on Heathcote Street, with a bottle of red wine at their monthly ‘Tropical Beats’ club night (basically calypso – basically amazing). Nottingham isn’t so bad sometimes!